


Attempting Humanity

by some_mighty_fine_print



Category: Aidan Turner - Fandom, Being Human (UK)
Genre: Being Human - Freeform, F/M, Ghosts, Magic, SuperNaturals, UK - Freeform, Vampires, Werewolves, aidan turner - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:54:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25742401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/some_mighty_fine_print/pseuds/some_mighty_fine_print
Summary: “Why did you stick around?” Annie asked quietly, only looking up from her seat at the bottom of the stairs once she felt Gianna’s eyes on her. “What possessed you to stay when all that’s happened has gotten you, and us, hurt?”“You did…you all did.” Gianna replied with a small smile. “With your routines, and your home, and your love, and your friendship… I wanted that; I wanted to know how I could get that…” she let out a long, exasperated huff of air in place of a sigh. “You’re not the only ones attempting humanity, you know.”
Relationships: John Mitchell/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

**_ Prologue~   
_ **

The Commander, Kemp, looked warily at the monitor in front of him, hands clasped firmly behind his back as he turned to the surveillance guard seated beside him.

“And…she’s not moved?”

“No, Sir…” the guard replied with a tired sigh. “Been in there three days, she has, and she’s barely flinched… hasn’t even closed her eyes…”

“No attempts to escape?” The Commander raised an ashen eyebrow at the monitor as he noticed the young woman on the screen sigh and flex her fingers.

“No, Sir… not that her usual method of doing so would work in _that_ room.” The guard paused, frowning in concern. “Why?”

“Because,” Kemp replied calmly, flicking on the audio to the surveillance feed. “She’s beginning… to _twitch_ …”

***

Gianna let out an uninterested huff of air as she leant back over her chair and stretched, groaning appreciatively at the relief the _pop_ of her spine gave her. But that’s just what she was. Entirely _uninterested_ in being in this room… and she was ready to let them know about it too.

“You know, the whole _stick her in a brightly lit white room_ thing you’ve got going on here is getting _quite_ boring now.” Gianna sighed and closed her eyes briefly. “I’m not sure how interrogation works in your mind… but in my day there was an element of Q and A involved… occasionally a multiple choice aspect…” she flexed her fingers then gestured about the room. “I mean, you gave me a table and chair, but _guys_ …” she shrugged, over the whole situation. “Really not much to work with.” Gianna paused and let her head rest against her arms folded on the table. “And that’ll be me realising you probably don’t even have the sound on…”

“No, Miss Ingle, we can hear you.” Kemp’s voice finally said through the intercom.

Kemp…the _new_ commander. One of those idealists who thought _‘if it’s supernatural, it’s evil…and it must die’_ …

“Ah, excellent.” Gianna rolled her eyes. “I was beginning to think you’d all buggered off…” her smile turned sinister. “ _Or died…_ ”

“You’ve not attempted escape.” Kemp spoke again.

“That would defeat the purpose.” Gianna replied, flicking imaginary lint off her clothes.

“And that is?”

“To find out why the fuck you put me in here in the first place.” Gianna tapped the table boredly with her finger, an unamused laugh escaping her as she continued. “Coz, the last time I checked… I was on _your_ side.”

“You’re an unnatural thing in and unnatural time.” Kemp replied curtly. “You may rethink where your loyalties lie.”

“Look through my file. I’ve been with this corporation since its infancy.” She snapped. “Vampires killed my family too, Kemp. I’ve as much reason as you to hate them… I simply don’t think it necessary to kill _every_ supernatural being we come across simply because we are different to _you_.”

“You’ve as much reason to turn on us as anyone too,” Kemp’s voice held little emotion. “Especially with our new plans…”

_‘Your new plans.’_ Gianna thought maliciously as Kemp droned on.

“Your history with the Guild and the CenSSA _has_ to be overlooked-”

“Hennersy would never have stood for this-” Gianna snapped, cutting Kemp off; but he continued in like.

“ _Hennersy_ would never have stood for _you_ had he seen what you really are! An abomination!” Kemp’s disgusted sneer was evident even through the intercom. “It’s a good thing he finally died. How long _did_ you keep him alive, hmm?”

“I didn’t.” Gianna gave a non-committal shrug. “ _Hennersy_ was just a name to you, but I knew all of them. Son, after son, after son. All of them better than friends. All of them better than family!” she forced herself to remain composed. “And then _you_ came along…”

“Cleaning up the world one supernatural species at a time.” A cruel voice replied.

“That’s genocide!” Gianna gaped.

“ _That’s_ progress.” Kemp snarled.

“And _that’s_ ,” Gianna looked calmly up at the security camera. “All I needed to know…”

Gianna stood abruptly and lobbed her chair over her head and across the room, shattering the mirrored glass wall opposite her; yanking apart the wiring to the security camera as an alarm screeched to life and slipping silently out of the base as those who would call for her blood tripped over themselves in search of her.


	2. Chapter 1 ~ Eyes Come in Sets

Gianna glanced along the platform anxiously. She both loved and despised security cameras, which was the exact reason she had her jumper hood up as she waited, talking to one of her contacts, for the train to arrive.

“I don’t know where they’ve been for the past hundred or so years, but,” her contact, Nigel, spoke in a high voice down the phone to her as the train finally screeched to a halt by the platform. “Whenever people start talking about keeping bloodlines, species, or race pure… it never ends well!”

Gianna sighed, smiling and nodding to the station attendant as she showed her ticket to board the train. “I swear, Nigel, if you launch into another one of your speeches about _white supremacy_ as a metaphor, then-”

“Okay! Chill!” Nigel said in a high voice again. “I should never have written my dissertation on it… I know too much now…”

“And that’s fine… just don’t preach to the converted about it.” Giana yawned as she boarded the train. “We’re equal, and that’s that.”

“When was the last time you slept?” Nigel’s voice became instantly concerned, and Giana hated it.

Gianna’s tone lowered dangerously. “Nigel.”

“Fine.” He gave up quickly. “But do you really think _humanity_ would call _us_ equal?” Nigel’s speculative tone irritated Giana even more than his concerned one… even more than his high-pitched panicked one!

“ _Humanity_ is a state of being, not a _people_.” Gianna grimaced as she made her way into the train and along the carriage to her seat, plonking herself down with a slight huff. “It’s _religion_ I’m more worried about… half the people who tell you they’re ‘practicing Catholics’ _aren’t_ , but they’ll get behind any idea if there’s a mob mentality attached.” She checked herself. “Imagine what they’d do if they found out their ancestors had good reason to burn people alive at the stake?!” Gianna winced. “I don’t know about you but I’d rather _not_ become barbeque, _thankyou very much!_ ”

“Do they not understand that _going to church_ makes you about as Catholic as _standing in a garage_ makes you a _car_?” Nigel scoffed and Gianna could just picture him rolling his eyes at the masses.

“It’s all well and good to be charitable and understanding until they have to apply those attributes to people they _don’t_ understand.” Gianna agreed. “But you said you had something for me?”

“Not over the phone…” Nigel suddenly whispered.

“That’s handy.” Giana glanced about herself.

“Why?” the frown was evident in Nigel’s voice.

“Because I’m already on my way to see you.” Gianna replied bluntly.

“Not at the house…” Nigel said quickly. “There’s a pub… on the corner of Weist and Maple a few blocks from where I live…”

Gianna frowned slightly. “The _New Found Out_?” she looked around again. “Yeah, I know it.”

“Meet me there…” Nigel repeated. “Meet me there and I’ll tell you where they’re keeping the _lab-rats_.”

“Your melodramatic voice does nothing to lessen my dislike for you calling our friends _lab-rats_.” Gianna glanced sideways across the aisle as an old man took his seat there. “But I’ll chew you out about that later…” she trailed off as she noticed a wire peeping out from beneath the elderly man’s shirt collar. She swallowed and, with a reluctant sigh, recited their code phrase. “ _I’ll need the keys, I’m locked out…_ ”

There was a pause at Nigel’s end, a long expectant pause, and then Nigel’s voice came quietly back to the conversation. “I’ll leave them under the mat…”

Gianna nodded to herself. “I’ll see you later then…”

“We really need a better key phrase…” Nigel sighed resignedly.

“I know.” Gianna replied as she caught the elderly chap glance her way. “Laters!”

“Yeah…” Nigel’s voice replied dubiously. “Later…”

***

Mitchell kicked a can along the cracked cement pavement as he walked back to the house after work. The feeling of normality, and of having nothing to do but _wait_ , irritated him even more… especially after having defeated everything else that had come their way. Maybe George was right…maybe he felt purposeless…

Mitchell kicked the can again and scoffed at himself, dismissing the thought as he paused across the street from the _New Found Out_ ; thinking he might finally let Annie pour him a pint. That was, until he saw someone pause outside the pub.

“ _Hel-lo…_ ” Mitchell murmured to himself, enunciating as he watched the young woman pause outside the pub, bend down by a potted plant and pull a faded brown envelope from the pot’s base-plate; looking into it suspiciously before heading inside. “What are _you_ up to then?”

Mitchell changed his mind. Today was _exactly_ the day to let Annie pour him a pint…

***

Annie looked up as Mitchell strode in, and smiled. However, that smile quickly turned into a frown as Mitchell shook his head and approached the bar cautiously.

“What can I get you, darlin’?” Annie asked, loud enough for nearly the whole bar to hear, as she pulled a glass from the rack.

“Lager…” Mitchell replied with a glance at the far table.

“Alright love!” Annie gave a fake grin as she poured him a pint, then proceeded to lean over the bar to whisper conspiratorially to him. “So, what’s going on? Another hostile takeover bid?”

“Very funny.” Mitchell gave her an unamused look before gesturing subtly over his shoulder. “At the far table… a young woman and a… _flamboyantly_ dressed…” Mitchell struggled to find an adjective for the man in question, finally settling on, “…individual…”

“Yeah…” Annie nodded a little, casting a brief glance over Mitchell’s shoulder. “What about them?”

“I watched _her_ come in… or rather, I watched her pull something out from under that potted plant outside and walk straight in here… and now they’re whispering and looking around like they’re ready to piss-bolt out of here if need be.” Mitchell murmured, casually sipping his lager and looking around as if he were looking to pick someone up. “And I’m gonna pinch the envelope…”

“How?” Annie scoffed. “By ‘chatting her up’? Look at the way she’s sitting, Mitchell.” Annie raised an eyebrow slightly at her housemate. “She is _closed_ for business.”

“Well, how would _you_ suggest I get it then?” Mitchell asked with a deflated huff.

“I wouldn’t suggest you get it.” Annie shrugged, picking up a wet cloth as she stepped out from behind the bar with a wink. “Watch this…”

***

Gianna paused at the entrance to the _New Found Out_ and looked around. Nigel normally would’ve met her at the door, but if he thought he, or she, was being followed…

Gianna looked around for a moment before noticing that the potted plant to the right of the door was slightly askew. She raised an eyebrow as she saw the faded, blotched brown envelope she could now see the corner of protruding too far from under the base-plate of the pot-plant. She sighed in exasperation as she crouched down and freed the envelope from its earthy confines; making a face as she peered inside.

Within the badly concealed envelope was a selection of samples, presumably from failed experiments, and a small stack of papers documenting whatever thought-to-be valuable stats the CenSSA had also gathered from those same experiments. With barely a hidden look of disgust, Gianna closed the envelope and marched inside the _New Found Out_.

A quick glance around the pub’s interior found Nigel hiding with a pint of Fosters at the back, and Gianna took no time in striding over to him and slapping the envelope down on the table in front of her informer with a repulsed sneer.

“What the fuck is this?!”

“Shutup and sit down.” Nigel replied quietly, raising his glass to his lips. “A guy just followed you in…”

“What can I get you darlin’?” an overly enthusiastic female voice asked from the bar behind Gianna, and she slid into the seat opposite Nigel.

“Lager.” A male voice replied a tad uncertainly.

“Alright love!” the same female voice replied.

Gianna clenched her jaw. “Alright, you have my attention…” Gianna looked over at Nigel and frowned at his expression. “What?”

“If he wanted to look conspicuous…he got it right.” Nigel scoffed.

Gianna turned briefly to look, turning back to Nigel after seeing how the girl behind the bar was nearly all over the newcomer. “Subtle…” Gianna smirked slightly. “Shame he’s a vamp… and she’s dead.”

“What?!” Nigel looked again briefly. “But she’s so corporal!”

“Doesn’t matter. He’s preoccupied, and _you_ ,” Gianna narrowed her eyes at a now fidgeting Nigel. “You’re going to talk… and quickly too.”

“And you’re going to order a drink and pretend to smile so we look _relatively_ normal.” Nigel gestured to a bar-hand and a young man came over. “I’ll have another Fosters please, Hugh… and she’ll have-”

“Kahlua and milk…no ice.” Gianna smiled, shaking her head when the young man walked off blushing. “ _Jesus_ …”

“You’re telling me!” Nigel chuckled quietly, but he sobered quickly. “The Guild isn’t what it used to be.”

“You’re telling _me_.” Gianna scoffed, offering a small smile to the man who’d brought their drinks over far too quickly; and Gianna waited til he shuffled away again before she continued with a heavy sigh. “The Initiative hasn’t been the same since Kemp got his greasy fingers into it and changed it to the CenSSA…in fact; it’s not the Guild anymore. It’s purely the CenSSA. Religious supremacists have taken over and have labelled anything not _one hundred percent_ human _evil_!”

“And those experiments are a joke.” Nigel nodded towards the envelope Gianna had slammed down on the table between them.

“What?” Gianna balked, opening the envelope again and pulling out the stats pages she’d previously ignored.

“They’re bogus.” Nigel continued calmly. “The pressure chamber, for preventing the full-moon change in werewolves; Kemp lets the PSI get too high on purpose…” he pulled the documents away from Gianna, stuffing them away and tucking the envelope into his jacket, throwing another envelope on the table; whispering. “He’s killing the subjects just to make them not change.”

“Nige-” Gianna began but was then cut off by her own shocked cry as a jug of ice water sloshed across the table and partially into their laps. She sighed and held her hands up as a frantic hand began wiping up the spill. “ _Wet…_ ”

“I’m _so_ sorry!” Gianna recognised the overly enthusiastic female voice who’s served the vampire that’d followed her in. “The chair leg was stuck out-”

“It’s fine.” Gianna waved in an unoffended fashion at the female ghost who’d managed to get a job in a bar. “We just need a dry tea-towel…”

“Yes, of course… right away!” the young, dead woman replied, voice suddenly chipper again.

As she bounced off, Gianna looked down at the table and raised an eyebrow at Nigel. “She took the envelope…”

“Yes.” Nigel nodded, downing his drink and he stood and produced the original envelope and documents. “And I suggest we skedaddle before she gives the other one to the vampire and he realises the pages are _blank_ …”

Gianna’s smile showed her comprehension as she moved towards the pub entrance with Nigel, pausing in the doorway only for Nigel to hand her the envelope again. “ _Agreed…_ ”

***

Mitchell looked up as Annie walked back around the bar and busied herself with tidying glasses and ringing out the soaked cloth in her hand. For a minute or two he let her continue, so as to not raise suspicion; but fairly soon his eagerness turned to frustration. Annie must have sensed this as, as soon as he glanced over his shoulder, a heavy, paper-sounding thud vibrated on the bar by his arm.

“There you go.” Annie smiled as Mitchell moved to obscure the envelope from view. “Wasn’t that hard actually.”

“Shutup…” Mitchell chided her, but his smile took the sting out of what he’d said.

“So? Go on then!” Annie grinned as she whispered. “Open it! I want in on the conspiracy!”

Mitchell vaguely heard movement behind himself but he ignored it in order to rip open the envelope; only to be presented with… _blank pages_ …

Mitchell checked them again, holding the paper to the light and even going so far as to pour water over the pages; but to no avail. Mitchell turned back to look at the pair who’d met, only to find them about to part ways at the door; a faded brown envelope passing between them cautiously. Mitchell met the young woman’s eyes as she turned back to look at him briefly, a small, smug smile tugging at the corner of her mouth as she slipped the envelope into a bag and stepped outside.

Mitchell’s eyes widened as she winked at him and dipped out of sight. Ignoring Annie’s protests, Mitchell sprang to his feet, knocking over the stool he’d been sat on in his haste to reach the door. With a frantic glance in both directions as he exited the bar, Mitchell was shocked to find both individuals had vanished, and he realised he’d been played. But there, on the air, was their scent. The male, human. But the female…was something else entirely… 


End file.
